Zakhilwal wants Pakhtun leaders to back Afghan peace parleys

PESHAWAR (Pajhwok): The Afghan ambassador has launched a push to win support from Pakistan’s Pakhtun politicians for overcoming the increasing trust deficit between the neighbours.

In a string of consultations, Dr. Omar Zakhilwal senior Pakhtuns leaders at his official residence in Islamabad and later visited Akora Khattak to meet Maulana Samiul Haq, the chief of Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Sami (JUI-S).

The Express Tribune reported on Friday that Zakhilwal, who is also President Ashraf Ghani’s special envoy to Pakistan, asked his interlocutors to help defuse tensions between the two countries.

He urged Samiul Haq, commonly dubbed as Taliban’s father, to support the intra-Afghan peace parleys. Haq was asked to exercise his influence over the Taliban, most of whom have graduated from his seminary.